REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

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jdh2550_1
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REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

Hi,

As soon as we finished a "pretty" version of the bike it turns cloudy on us! Not to be dissuaded we took pictures anyway. Here are some early pictures of the bike:

front34-500.jpg

rear-500.jpg

rear34-500.jpg

sideview-500.jpg

These are early pictures so there will be some slight changes from what you see - but there she is, our new bike!

dshupp
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

Cool! Looks like a comfortable seat, and stereo speakers too! Looks like the windshield is higher as well.

David

PJD
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

It has some aesthetic elements I like better than the E-fun based bikes, like a real windshield but other elements are worse - like that huge "tail". And, that positively over done, comic-bookish front fairing (What's that "beak" for?)- and what's with with those oversized, protruding turn signal lights!

Form should follow function.

jdh2550_1
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

Gee thanks PJD - I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder eh? ;-)

The tail size is helpful for us because it lets us hide the controller and the charger and DC/DC converter back there. No big ugly controller hanging out there (which has been a criticism of the EFun-D by many - although some like it that way). Oh, and yes we have taken care of cooling issues - the rear wheel stirs up a lot of air flow and we have a big honkin' heat sink on the inside facing that turbulent air stream. I do agree that it's not exactly sleek at the back - but so are a lot of other maxi-scooters. Look at the Suzuki Burgman, Honda Silverwing and Vectrix VX-1 - they all have a certain wideness of the rear. I think it suggests "comfort" and "stability" rather than "speed" and "nimbleness".

I hadn't even thought anything about the turn signals being "protruding" or otherwise strange. As for form following function the turn signals work quite well "oversized" is good in terms of signals, right?

I guess you just can't please all the people - personally I like it. But yes, I'm very, VERY, biased!

I do appreciate the feedback (really I do) - so keep it coming. Many thanks.

John H. Founder of Current Motor Company - opinions on this site belong to me; not to my employer
Remember: " 'lectric for local. diesel for distance" - JTH, Amp Bros || "No Gas.

dshupp
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

That's clever hiding the controller under the body. I hadn't noticed it. If you offer white as a color, those clear signal lights would disappear. Are any two-tone color options being considered? That might allow you to de-emphasize certain parts. Did you fit an on-board charger in there?

David

jdh2550_1
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

Hi David,

We're not currently considering white - but might do silver. No two-tone color schemes either. We are thinking of offering an "any color you want" option where we'll custom paint the panels. Not sure how much that would cost and whether it would be a popular option.

At the moment the charger isn't on board. However, we're planning to move to a much smaller yet higher quality DC/DC converter (it will still have a 200W output which will allow for powering user accessories). If we do that then we might fit a small 6A to 10A charger on board and offer a larger 15A charger as an option.

Thanks for the feedback!

John H. Founder of Current Motor Company - opinions on this site belong to me; not to my employer
Remember: " 'lectric for local. diesel for distance" - JTH, Amp Bros || "No Gas.

fcherny
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

John,

I think the bike looks great. As far as color choice goes, I love blue.

But as a potential customer, my first concern would not be color choice or whether there's a BMS or not.

It's quality. Specifically, what process will you be following to guarantee that each bike you make has the same quality parts and workmanship as all the previous bikes you've made.

Being a z20 customer (I've had the bike for over a year and I've just gotten it fixed again - working on my 4th controller), I've become hype-sensitive to quality.

Nevertheless, I truly appreciate what you are doing. I wish you the best of luck.

jdh2550_1
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

Hi fcherny,

What you describe is the number one reason why we are doing the final manufacturing and assembly here in Ann Arbor, MI. We believe that we will live or die dependent on our quality and on our interactions with our customers.

Thanks for wishing us luck!

All the best,
John H.

John H. Founder of Current Motor Company - opinions on this site belong to me; not to my employer
Remember: " 'lectric for local. diesel for distance" - JTH, Amp Bros || "No Gas.

MikeB
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

The tail size is helpful for us because it lets us hide the controller and the charger and DC/DC converter back there. No big ugly controller hanging out there (which has been a criticism of the EFun-D by many - although some like it that way). Oh, and yes we have taken care of cooling issues - the rear wheel stirs up a lot of air flow and we have a big honkin' heat sink on the inside facing that turbulent air stream. I do agree that it's not exactly sleek at the back - but so are a lot of other maxi-scooters. Look at the Suzuki Burgman, Honda Silverwing and Vectrix VX-1 - they all have a certain wideness of the rear. I think it suggests "comfort" and "stability" rather than "speed" and "nimbleness".

The wide tail reminds me of the Honda Helix, which certainly has some pedigree. The Helix was often referred to as a 'Barcalounger on wheels', since it was a really comfortable seating position. I prefer the feet-forward riding position, if possible, to the more upright stance that the smaller scooters require.

I like having a large under-seat space, since that's one of the reasons that a scooter is more practical than a motorcycle. Given the space allocated to the power components, how much storage will be under there? And if there isn't much storage under the seat, is that little wire rack going to be able to hold a large trunk box like a Givi 45-liter model?

The turn signals do see a bit odd at first, but they may be growing on me. Btw, will they do double duty as running lights and signals, or just signals? I'd rather have them function as running lights too, if that doesn't add too much complexity. And I like the double headlights, but what's the wattage? My EVD has a really poor illumination pattern from the headlights, which is one of my biggest annoyances, have you looked at your bike's illumination pattern on a dark road?

Being able to have an on-board charger would be nice, even if it was a slow charge (lower amperage). I like the idea of a heat sink above the rear wheel, but I also wouldn't mind having something on the side of the rear swingarm. We've got no CVT or muffler like a normal scooter, so the rear wheel seems rather bare.

My electric vehicle: CuMoCo C130 scooter.

Mik
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

A heat sink fanned by the wind off the rear wheel might be very prone to become a silt filter!
It might also be subjected to thermal shocks due to water being thrown onto it when the scooter runs through puddles with an already hot heat sink.

It might be better to protect the heat sink from the elements and add a variable speed fan to cool it - as needed.

This information may be used entirely at your own risk.

There is always a way if there is no other way!

PJD
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

Gee thanks PJD - I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder eh? ;-)

Don't get me wrong; I Appreciate the effort and look forward to seeing the finished product on the market.

jdh2550_1
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

PJD - I was just teasing - no offense taken.

Mik - we'll see how well the internal heatsink fairs - there's a lot of mud on the roads with a Michigan spring!

MikeB - We haven't taken away any of the underseat storage. We were originally planning on offering a free rear trunk with every model - however, the version we could afford to give away for free wasn't good enough quality. So, instead of that we're going to become a supplier for another luggage manufacturer and we can install the cases as an optional factory fit item. Or you can fit your own favorite case (such as a Givi).

Our lights may well be brighter than most of the competitions - we're using a DC/DC converter that puts out 13.8V. That's the voltage level of a typical alternator. Most competitors use a 12V output. Also, the DC/DC is rated 200W constant 275W peak so you'll have the headroom to add more lighting if you want.

John H. Founder of Current Motor Company - opinions on this site belong to me; not to my employer
Remember: " 'lectric for local. diesel for distance" - JTH, Amp Bros || "No Gas.

Mik
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

Mik - we'll see how well the internal heatsink fairs - there's a lot of mud on the roads with a Michigan spring!

I thought said that you had mounted it externally??

This information may be used entirely at your own risk.

There is always a way if there is no other way!

jdh2550_1
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

Mik,

Sorry I misspoke. The controller is internal. The heat sink protrudes into the rear wheel cavity and is indeed external. We've mounted the fins vertically which is sub-optimal from a thermal design but will reduce the "mud trap" effect. We'll test and see how well it works.

If it doesn't work then I'd rather figure out how to duct an air flow over an internal heatsink rather than either use fans or mount the controller external. But those are all options.

At the moment heat in the controller doesn't seem to be a major concern for us (heat in the motor hurts us before heat in the controller).

John H. Founder of Current Motor Company - opinions on this site belong to me; not to my employer
Remember: " 'lectric for local. diesel for distance" - JTH, Amp Bros || "No Gas.

MikeB
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

MikeB - We haven't taken away any of the underseat storage. We were originally planning on offering a free rear trunk with every model - however, the version we could afford to give away for free wasn't good enough quality. So, instead of that we're going to become a supplier for another luggage manufacturer and we can install the cases as an optional factory fit item. Or you can fit your own favorite case (such as a Givi).

I guess my favorite case is the one I already own, which is a Givi. I purchased it for my Reflex, moved it to my Silverwing, and now move it back and forth between the Silverwing and the EVD. But if you can get a good sized one with a body color match, I might consider a 'factory' addon. Otherwise, I just need to know that the wire rack will carry some weight.

Our lights may well be brighter than most of the competitions - we're using a DC/DC converter that puts out 13.8V. That's the voltage level of a typical alternator. Most competitors use a 12V output. Also, the DC/DC is rated 200W constant 275W peak so you'll have the headroom to add more lighting if you want.

Excellent. So, how's the illumination pattern? That's a function of the shape of the reflector behind the bulb, and a bad pattern doesn't get fixed with brighter bulbs. Also, it looks like the front forks are exposed enough to mount some aux lights down there, what's the diameter of the forks at a suitable light mounting height?

My electric vehicle: CuMoCo C130 scooter.

turok
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

Hey John,

Very nice job!

Like most vehicles, it takes a few minutes to get used to, but it's coming :-).
I like the steering setup more than with the vectrix!
I like the front all together!
(more than I like the tail to be honest, but, as you say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder:-))
I like the idea of choosing your own color, as I already said, once my V would be out of warranty, I'll strip and paint it as soon as I can.
I'm very curious about speed, range and the other important details!
But anyway, I'm glad to see that the competition grows. In a few years, we couldn't image our world without EV's any more!!

Good luck!

"doing nothin = doing nothing wrong" is invalid when the subject is environment

turok
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

I'm very curious about speed, range and the other important details!
Sorry, nevermind, I see I missed some posts:-)

"doing nothin = doing nothing wrong" is invalid when the subject is environment

fcherny
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Re: REV-1 Product Update - PRODUCT PICTURES!

I suggest you use Elbonian workers to manufacture your EV. Saves money.

(chuckle, chuckle)

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